Council conclusions: Increased European RTD cooperation; the common information area
The Conclusions of the Presidency of the European Council, delivered at the Copenhagen meeting of 21-22 June 1993, among other topics set out the importance of increased European cooperation in the field of research and development and proposed the following objectives in its support: - The devotion of 3% of GNP to research and development and innovation, as opposed to the 2% currently spent; - A concentration of Community action on areas which can complement and enhance the policies of Member States and businesses; - The creation, at European level, of frameworks for cooperation between businesses to help them harness innovation and adapt production processes. The Council also concluded that a new technological revolution focuses on "the common information area". In order to keep pace, Europe must create a decentralized economy with a properly trained workforce and an abundance of small and medium-sized businesses, each cooperating with one another. At the same time, the development is required of a European information infrastructure to serve as the real artery of the economy of the future and to stimulate the information industry (telecommunications, computers, fibre-optics, etc.) with the prospect of abundant supply over a number of years. European training courses must also be set up for these new trades and professions and distance working by computer encouraged, not only for people in the data-processing industry itself but also for those working in education, medicine, social services, environmental protection, urban planning and those involved in dealing with important social issue such as disease, drug abuse and crime.